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On Sunday April 14, Saturday Night Live announced that singer Dua Lipa would be the next host and musical guest for the upcoming episode on May 4, 2024. Taking to their social media accounts on X and Instagram, SNL posted a photo with Dua Lipa's name and the date of the upcoming episode.
On the other hand, Lipa also took to Instagram to announce her impending dual role on SNL. Posting the same photo that was shared by SNL, she captioned the post with a simple sentence:
"DOUBLE DUTY DUA!!!!!!!!"
The announcement comes at the heels of Ryan Gosling's third venture as SNL host on April 13's episode, where country singer Chris Stapleton performed as the musical guest. Meanwhile, Dua Lipa's announcement was met with excitement from fans and celebrities alike who expressed their anticipation for the upcoming episode of Saturday Night Live.
How many times has Dua Lipa been on SNL?
While the May 4 episode will mark Dua Lipa's first stint as a Saturday Night Live host, the Levitating singer is no stranger to the SNL stage. With the current season's episode 18, she will be making her third appearance on SNL as she has already been a musical guest on two occasions in the past.
Dua Lipa's first appearance as a musical stage on SNL was on February 3, 2018, during the thirteenth episode of season 43. During her appearance, Lipa performed her smash-hit song New Rules, as well as Homesick, off of her eponymous debut studio album.
Meanwhile, the episode was hosted by Academy Award-winner Natalie Portman.
Dua Lipa was next set to perform at SNL on March 28, 2020, for Season 45's sixteenth episode with John Krasinski onboard as host. However, the episode was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The singer thus made her second SNL appearance later that year on December 19 for the ninth episode of season 46. While SNL alum Kristen Wiig appeared as the host, Lipa performed her singles Don't Start Now and Levitating from her Grammy-winning second studio album titled Future Nostalgia.
With two SNL experiences under her belt, Dua Lipa will now take up the reins as host for her third attendance. Additionally, she will be performing as the musical guest to promote her latest album called Radical Optimism, which will be dropping a day before the SNL episode, on May 3, 2024.
All about Dua Lipa's new album Radical Optimism
Following the critically-acclaimed disco-inspired Future Nostalgia, Dua Lipa's announced her new album Radical Optimism via an Instagram Live on March 13, 2024. As per a January 2024 article by Rolling Stone, the record is described as:
"A psychedelic-pop-infused tribute to UK rave culture."
Offering a sneak peek into the sound of her new album, Dua Lipa released three promotional singles accompanied by music videos. Houdini, released on November 9, 2023, topped the charts in several countries and became her second-longest-running number-one on the Billboard Dance/Electronic Songs chart.
Training Season was released on February 15, 2024, while the third single Illusion was released on April 11.
In a press release, Dua Lipa shared more details about the album. She revealed:
"A couple years ago, a friend introduced me to the term Radical Optimism. It’s a concept that resonated with me, and I became more curious as I started to play with it and weave it into my life... At the same time, I found myself looking through the music history of psychedelia, trip hop, and Britpop."
Produced by Danny L Harle and Kevin Parker, Radical Optimism comprises of 11 tracks. The album will be released by Warner Records on May 3, prior to Dua Lipa's appearance on Saturday Night Live the following night on May 4, 2024.
